Labour hand out free tickets to 'Jezfest' music and politics festival amid low turnout fears
2 min read
Labour is handing out free tickets to a music and politics festival it is organising amid concerns about poor sales.
The Labour LIVE event - which has been dubbed 'Jezfest' because Jeremy Corbyn will be among those taking part - will take place in Tottenham, north London, on 16 June.
Music acts appearing include The Magic Numbers and Reverend and the Makers, while there will also be speeches by John McDonnell, Kate Osamor and Owen Jones.
Details of the event were first unveiled in march, but PoliticsHome revealed last month that barely 2,000 tickets had been sold for the 20,000-capacity venue.
Party officials have also been forced to deny reports that the festival is facing a loss of up to £1 million.
It emerged two weeks ago that the Unite trade union - Labour's largest single financial backer - was giving away a thousand tickets to the event and laying on free transport.
Now it has been revealed that some constituency Labour parties have also received free tickets - prompting anger from some who have already paid the full price of £35.
A Labour spokesperson said: "A small number of tickets have been donated to some CLPs.
"We look forward to hosting Labour LIVE which will be a fun day out for all our supporters and members of the local community."
Labour sources also insisted it was normal for the party to lay on free travel for those living outside London travelling to events in the capital.
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